kara

This year we celebrated Christmas with my family the Monday following Christmas, when Katy and Tom returned from celebrating Christmas with Tom’s family in Cleveland.

Sophie immediately ran over to Kyle and asked to be held, something quite different from months past.

In addition to sandwiches, my mom and dad made homemade chicken noodle and mushroom barley soups—yum. Kyle and Christina brought homemade bread and hummus.

Sophie thoroughly enjoyed her first buckeye for dessert.

Stockings first!

Mom and Dad did a big basement cleaning this fall, so we found some basement “treasures” in our stocking. Dad put an old OU bumper sticker and a copy of The Post from the 1970s with a picture of a streaker on the front. Here Mom’s holding up graduation pictures of her and my dad, which my Dad found.

Mom made Katy and Tom beautiful stockings.

Sophie, among many other things, got an amazing pop-up version of We’re Going On a Bear Hunt from Aunt Katy and Uncle Tom.

Christina and Kyle got lots of cooking supplies and gadgets.

Sophie recently spent the night at my parents’ house and, while there, made a super-secret Christmas craft project for us. She even wrapped it—and was so excited to give it to us.

It’s a beautiful Christmas wreath—made up of her tiny green hand prints—with red berries. Now I understand the immense love for your own children’s work—no matter the quality. (But really, it’s a work of art, don’t you think?) ((See what I mean!?))

Sophie soon thereafter fell asleep in Uncle Tom’s arms.

But she then refused to continue sleeping when we tried to put her down for a real nap. So, instead, she loaded up all her new toys in her Radio Flyer wagon and pushed it around.

Yep, you guessed it. (Or maybe you didn’t.) Charades.

My favorite view from home.

A good, good night.

“I wish we could put up some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month.” —Harlan Miller

Nini and Sophie

My grandma showed all of us some of her more treasured items, including a gold locket with her mother’s name, Zoe, engraved on it, money from Fiji my grandpa brought back from the war, and this beautiful quilt—handmade by her grandmother many years ago.

present time!

Sophie got another doll baby (so now she can practice for the two babies to arrive this spring) and a stroller, diaper bag and carrier from Great Grandma.

present time!

MaryBeth, Tammy, Josh and Sam

gag gift time!

Sophie preferred pushing her stroller to participating in the gag gift exchange. One year, many years ago, I got a tricycle for Christmas and I, too, rode it around the island in this very same kitchen.

It snowed throughout the day on the farm.

The kitchen also was fun for chase games with Pop Pop.

Sophie loved singing Christmas songs and dancing with Amanda and Autumn.

a tired Gregory and Suzanna

a reluctant-to-go-home Sophie

“The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: The presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other.” —Burton Hillis

Sophie wore her new dress and cardigan—and fancy red shoes—from Gramma.

Then Gramma and Paw Paw came over for brunch (I made a surprisingly delicious apple coffee cake with crumble topping and brown sugar glaze) and presents.

Nini and Pop Pop came over that evening for dinner. And even though we were celebrating Christmas with my family a few days later, Sophie got an early Christmas present from them to use with her new table and chairs.

We now have daily (sometimes, hourly) tea parties. All are welcome to stop by for tea sometime. Although Sophie will insist you have cream and sugar.

Andy’s parents cooked a wonderful, traditional, Uhl family Christmas dinner—tenderloin, roasted potatoes and green bean casserole.

The day ended as all Christmases should—dress off, stickers on.

Oh, and of course, a nightcap of tea.

“The earth has grown old with its burden of care,
But at Christmas it always is young.” —Phillips Brooks

“Christmas is a time when you get homesick—even when you’re home.” —Carol Nelson

Sophie did really, really well at First Unitarian Church of Cincinnati‘s Christmas Eve service. She loved the singing, especially the church’s delightful version of “The 12 Days of Christmas.” After, we came home for the obligatory family picture in front of the Christmas tree, and then began working on appetizers.

Sophie’s Great Aunt Susie made her a beautiful Christmas dress, which poofed nicely when Sophie stood on top of the heater vent. And when the package arrived in the mail, I opened it, pulled out the dress and Sophie said, “Beautiful!” before I could say a word. She loves it.

Then we had a bit of a smoke-filled-house disaster thanks to the bacon-wrapped water chestnuts I made (Andy was right—I should have used the jelly roll pan to avoid so many drips). There was also a three-muddy-dogs-on-the-dining-room-carpet disaster, which we’re still working on cleaning up. But here you can (sort of) see our appetizer display.

Sophie, of course, enjoyed the cookies best.

Then, she got to partake in a Uhl family tradition and open one gift on Christmas Eve. It was a book that, of course, went to bed with her.

Sophie picked out cookies for Santa, carrots for the reindeer and agreed that a glass of milk was a good idea, too.

She was slightly distracted by the food while reading ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.

OK, a lot distracted. At the end of the story we had to get new cookies for Santa and new carrots for the reindeer.

Then, goodnight hugs and chocolate-flavored kisses. And hopefully, later, visions of sugarplums dancing in her sweet head.

“Even as an adult I find it difficult to sleep on Christmas Eve. Yuletide excitement is a potent caffeine, no matter your age.” —Carrie Latet

Before Christmas Mom and I went over to Nini and Pop Pop’s house to bake more Christmas cookies. This year Nini showed me her Christmas snow globes. You shake them (carefully) and snow falls all around everything and then you turn a little knob on the bottom and music plays—there were even small ones that I could shake!

After turning on all the snow globes, I was put in charge of unwrapping Hershey Kisses. Nini and Mom were very impressed with my dedication to the task. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize I was unwrapping chocolate—that I could eat—until I was almost done. That’s when I got a little sidetracked. Then there was more eating and less unwrapping.

Mom made some dough and I got to help her roll the balls in sugar. Then I got less interested in cooking and more interested in exploring upstairs. So Nini and Mom took turns baking and watching me—a fun day.

“Inside the snow globe on my father’s desk, there was a penguin wearing a red-and-white-striped scarf. When I was little my father would pull me into his lap and reach for the snow globe. He would turn it over, letting all the snow collect on the top, then quickly invert it. The two of us watched the snow fall gently around the penguin. The penguin was alone in there, I thought, and I worried for him. When I told my father this, he said, ‘Don’t worry, Susie; he has a nice life. He’s trapped in a perfect world.'” —Alice Sebold, The Lovely Bones

Before Christmas Gramma and Paw Paw came over to make the cut-out Christmas cookies they make every year. Paw Paw made the dough and cut out the shapes.

Dad wore his Christmas apron.

Mom tried to put an apron on me.

I didn’t like it.

Then we made icing! Lemon, orange and almond.

While waiting for the cookies to come out of the oven, Mom introduced me to nonpareils.

Nonpareils are very good for licking off fingers.

Turns out I’m a very good cookie decorator …

and cookie eater.

While waiting for the next batch of cookies to come out of the oven, Dad tried to humor me by playing with his icing. This worked for a little bit but …

eventually the wait just got too long. All I wanted to do was decorate cookies and there were none to decorate. Did they not know that 15 minutes to a not-even-two-year-old is a very, very, very long time? Especially when it’s past my bedtime.

Milk helped. As did my bedtime routine. While Mom was giving me my bath and putting me to bed, Dad, Paw Paw and Gramma decorated the rest. Aren’t they pretty?

“I am still convinced that a good, simple, homemade cookie is preferable to all the store-bought cookies one can find.” —James Beard

Lately I’ve been practicing drinking water without a lid.

You have to hold on tight, take very small sips (but still remember to breathe) and hold the cup so tight to your face that you leave red marks on your forehead and cheeks.

I love it. So much so that I kept asking for more and more and more.

“We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. The trick is, knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out.” —Ray Bradbury

Now that we know Tucker isn’t going to eat the formal dining room table legs and Sophie knows better than to play with the handmade pottery sitting on the handmade Arts & Crafts bookcase (we hope), we’ve taken down the baby gate that once blocked off entry into the dining room from the kitchen. Sophie was thrilled with our decision. Now she can circle the entire house—living room to kitchen to dining room to living room. It doesn’t seem so long ago when I remembered the joy of discovering circle walks in people’s homes. However, her favorite way to engage in the circle walk is by marching. “March!” she’ll say (over and over and over again). “March!” She loves to lead. But she insists on having someone follow. Tucker happily joins in, too. And with every pass of her toy bin she picks up a new toy—that you must carry. Oh, and some sort of singing is necessary, too. “March!”

“Every life is march from innocence, through temptation, to virtue or vice.” —Lyman Abbott

“This is the message of Christmas: We are never alone.” —Taylor Caldwell